Broken Resolve
by Skygryphon
Summary: This is a written version of the scene at the beginning of Episode 53, where Gin decides to stop by and mess with Rukia's head...


_This story is basically a written version of the scene at the beginning of Episode 53 (where Gin is terrorizing Rukia, as usual). Technically it's not_ _a "fanfiction", since the story belongs to part of the manga._ _However, I've always wished Bleach was a novel, so that's why I wrote this. :) I hope you enjoy it! If you have time, I'd greatly appreciate it if you'd leave a quick comment at the end. Thank you!_

Broken Resolve

_Based off of Episode 53_

The guards stood on either side of Rukia, grasping the chains binding her neck with steady hands. They dragged her over the bridge connecting the Repentance Cell to Soukyoku Hill. Miles of the Soul Society stretched beneath her, stabbing into the horizon and farther than the eye could see. The faint rays of the new sun flickered over the land, casting the houses in a pure glow. A wholeness accompanied the dawn, filled with the sense of a new beginning still untainted by the day.

_Such a beautiful day…a beautiful day to die. _Rukia brushed the bang out of her eyes, though the wind swept it across her face as soon as she lowered her hand. _Is Fate laughing at me right now…?_

Suddenly, a part of the wholeness withered away into nothing. Somebody's spiritual pressure, no doubt. Rukia's eyes widened as she recognized the energy.

"Renji…"

_No…no, it can't be him…_

She leaned over the edge of the bridge, frantically searching for the area where it had disappeared. The chains tugged on her neck, biting deep into her skin, but they were overshadowed by the pain stabbing through her heart. Using all of her energy, she thrust her mind out and grabbed at the fading spirit particles. Her breath caught in her throat. The blood pounded in her ears, wiping out the sound of the wind.

"Renji!" she screamed. Tears poured down her face, dripping down into the city below. "Why…why did you do it?" Her voice choked with another onslaught of tears. Her vision blurred and wavered before it, the sky and city blending together into one entity. She lowered her face, unable to let the guards catch her moment of weakness.

Through the rush in her head, she could faintly make out the sound of footsteps, as though they were coming from the other side of a cave. Echoing. Menacing. Just like…

She whipped her head around, the tears soaring into the sky only to be caught by the wind. Her eyes widened at the sight of the figure, driving out all common sense. She tried to swallow, but a lump was glued into the middle of her throat. The figure smiled while advancing towards her, the corners of his mouth arching up at an unnatural angle.

"Good morning," he crooned. "How are you today, Rukia dear?"

An iron cage tightened around her lungs as she laid eyes on him. On that smirk. Sweat drenched down her face, mingling with the remnants of tears.

"Gin…" she whispered. "…Ichimaru."

The man stopped a few feet away from her, scrutinizing her with his narrowed eyes.

"Such bad manners, Rukia," he drawled. "But I see you're just the same as you always were: still rude. You know, you must address me only as Captain Ichimaru. If you're not careful, you may receive a serious scolding from your Brother Byakuya." His grin widened. She forced herself to quell the shaking in her legs. _Don't show any fear…don't give him that satisfaction…_ With a deep breath, she forced herself to look directly into his face.

"I apologize…Captain Ichimaru," she said, keeping her voice carefully neutral. The last two words caught, but she shoved them out between clenched teeth.

Gin stared at her for a moment, his lips curling even higher. A chuckle broke out from between his lips, sending shivers running down Rukia's spine to join the shaking in her legs.

"Oh no, did you think I was serious?" His voice shook with the laughter. "Don't worry, I'm not about to turn you in. I really don't even mind, since you and I have known each other so long."

"I know you didn't come by to make small talk, Captain," she hissed, narrowing her eyes. "Tell me, why are you here?"

"Well…" He frowned slightly and gazed up at the sky, his eyebrows furrowed in deep thought. "I suppose no particular reason, Rukia. I was just out taking a walk and thought I'd visit." He stooped down to her height until his face was mere inches from hers. "Just to tease you a little," he whispered, his smirk breaking his face in two.

Rukia involuntarily stepped back, her expression slipping for a mere second. Gin's eyes locked onto her face, registering the unconcealed disgust. The corners of his mouth twitched.

_I've always hated this man…_She remembered the first time she'd stared into his slanted eyes, hypnotized by his gaze. Back when Byakuya had become Captain. He and Gin ran into each other shortly afterwards. They'd stopped to chat, though nothing of any substance was said. It didn't seem like anything, just two captains exchanging pleasantries. To an outsider, they would have seemed like perfectly normal conversations. But not to her. For a split second, Gin's eyes had glanced down to gaze at her next to Byakuya, practically glued to her brother's side. His smile wracked her body with shivers, followed by a cold sweat. She tried to tear her eyes away, but she was frozen, afraid even to blink her eyes. Everything about him…his fingers…his lips…the way his eyes narrowed and shifted…he reminded her of a snake, holding her in place with its gleaming eyes. It turned away and continued speaking with her brother, but she felt as though he had his hands around her neck, slowly cutting off the air until she couldn't even scream…

"What's the matter?"

Rukia snapped out of her thoughts, thrust back into the world by his words. He stood in front of her with an exaggerated expression of concern on his face.

"It seems you fell into a trance there."

She shot him a glance, wondering if he suspected the subject of her thoughts. _Judging by that smirk of his, he probably knows…_

"…sort of," she muttered, a trace of irritation flitting through her words. The silence stretched taut between them, stifling all notion of time. The shouts of Soul Reapers from below wafted up to where they stood, towering over the city. A flock of birds soared overhead, their cries mixing with the shouts to form an ethereal shriek. Gin's eyes shifted from the birds to stare out over the bridge, fixed on an invisible point.

"By the way, seems he isn't actually dead yet." Seeing the confusion on her face, he added, "Renji, that is."

Her eyes shot in the direction he stared, following his gaze. A flicker of hope rose up from deep within the depths of her soul, but she forced herself to shove it back down. Taking a deep breath, she calmed herself and tentatively scanned the area, searching for any fragment of Renji's spiritual pressure. She sensed nothing, not even a sliver. Her heart sank, the dead weight inside her stomach returning.

_I should've known better…why did I even believe-_

Suddenly, she felt a shard of Renji's energy from somewhere deep within the city. Concentrating all her senses, she could feel it pulsating weakly, as though it were a sun in its last moments of life. The lead flowing through her veins dissipated, followed by a surge of pure relief.

_ It's true! I have to concentrate and search, but I can still sense his energy. But it's so weak…_

"But he will die. Soon."

Rukia's eyes locked onto his, fury bubbling inside her veins.

"It's kind of pathetic," he continued, drawing sustenance from her anger, "He tried to save your life but he just got cut to pieces-"

"-Don't you dare make light of him!" she roared, lurching forward. The chains yanked her back, but her eyes never left his face. Her heart pounded rapidly, driving boiling blood into the farthest reaches of her body. The blood gathered in her eyes, flames blazing and dancing from within to match the rage contorting her face. Gin watched her with an expression of faint interest, his smile twitching as though he found her antics amusing.

"Are you afraid?"

The fury drained out to be replaced by a cold chill.

"Afraid? Of what?"

"You don't want Renji and the others to die trying to rescue you, do know?" His voice took on a patronizing tone, dripping with mockery. "Knowing they're trying to save you must make this all the more painful."

Rukia drew in her breath, feeling as though he'd ripped into her inner thoughts and dragged them out. Gin turned his gaze away from the area of Renji's energy to stare directly at her.

"Want me to save you?"

A gasp escaped from her lips. It was lost amongst the gasps of the guards, their eyes wide and grips on the chains slackening.

"Ca-Captain Ichimaru!"

"You don't mean it!"

"What are you saying, sir?"

Gin turned a deaf ear to their protests and advanced forward, his face filling Rukia's vision.

"I could rescue you from this exection and save your life right now,. You and Renji. And the others too."

Rukia stared at him with wide eyes, her entire vision framed on his face looming high above her. Disbelief seeped into her veins, mixed with a strange tingling sensation. Something she'd buried long ago. _Is he serious? What could he possibly have to gain from saving me? There's even less reason for him to save Ichigo and Renji. _Her gaze dropped down to his fingers, pale and slender like a small, deadly snake. _Why would he say such a thing…?_

"You think I'm kidding?" The snake loomed forward. She felt his hand clamp down on the top of her head. His face was mere inches from hers, so close that her vision blurred when she tried to focus. She felt his hot breath beating against her throat, felt the sweat from his hand mingle with the oils on her hair.

"I am."

She heard somebody gasp. Maybe it was her. It didn't matter. All that mattered was the snake in front of her. She felt the pressure on her head disappear as it slithered away and turned, his back the only thing that registered through the fog clouding her mind.

"Bye bye, Rukia. I'll see you once more, at the Souyoku."

The last thing she saw was him waving. The fog slipped over her eyes, pitching her into complete darkness. The only sound she could hear was the thudding of her heartbeat, though there was nothing to be pumped through her veins.

_I…I can't believe I let him do that to me. After I had abandoned all hope…excepted my fate and my impending death…he was able to shake my resolve. _Her inner voice caught and trembled. She clenched her teeth, feeling a cold liquid seep through her frozen body. _By holding out that small sliver of hope, he managed to make me yearn, just a little. He made me want to live again! _A hidden source inside of her suddenly burst open, roaring with long-constrained flames. The cold liquid inside boiled over, bubbling from the turmoil raging within. Her voice rose to a shriek, rising and falling as she neared the edge of the cliff of insanity. _How could he have shattered my strength so easily?_

A scream tore out of her throat, blasted forward by the boiling emotions stewing in the depths of her soul. The shriek rose into the air, mingling with the wind to be swept into the sky, towards the man walking down the bridge.

He smiled.


End file.
